Mobile wire roller apparatus



United States Patent Inventor Appl. No.

Filed Patented Assignee George E. White Winona, Kansas June 24, 1969Continuation of Ser. No. 678,061, Oct. 25, 1967, abandoned.

Dec. 1, 1970 Johanna A. Michael doing business as Michael Mfg. Co.

Winona, Kansas MOBILE WIRE ROLLER APPARATUS 9 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

Int. Cl Bh /40 Field of Search 242/865, 86.64, 86.7, 100.1

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3/1886 12/1891 4/1906 10/19609/1961 9/l96l l/l963 Bigelow Robinson Jacox Pleiss... Goode.

Brady Sprague et a1.

Primary ExaminerNathan L. Mintz Attorney-McGrew and Edwards ABSTRACT:Wire roller apparatus inclusive of wheelmounted body having rotary wirereel and reel drive mounted on body. Reel positively rotated by drive towind wire on reel while standing and unwind wire from reel, and tautenwire paid out from reel during movement of body along work area. Reelsections arranged for movement lengthwise of shaft and shaft mounts onupright portions of body arranged for permitting removal of reel frombody and wound wire coil from reel.

Patented Dec. 1, 1970 Sheet Q of 2 FIG. 4

INVENTUR. GEORGE E. W/'// 7 5 A TTORNEYS MOIBILE WIRE ROLLER APPARATUSThis application is a continuation of applicants earlier US. applicationNo. 678,061, filed Oct. 25, 1967, now abandoned, for Mobile Wire RollerApparatus.

This invention relates to apparatus for handling wire in rolled form andmore particularly to mobile apparatus suitable for winding and unwindinglengths of various types of rolled wire for the construction of fencesand the like.

Fences of substantial length are made to enclose large areas for variouspurposes such as to define property boundaries, for animal containmentand for security purposes. Wire forming these fences is of various typesincluding woven, barbed and smooth. Such wire is furnished from thesupplier in rolls of standard lengths and width which are generallybulky in nature and require its unrolling or unwinding along aparticular area and a tautening of the wire between support posts duringinstallation.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a simple anddurable apparatus for handling wire of substantial lengths of the typeused in the construction of fences.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel wire rollercapable of moving along a working area and progressively paying out wirebetween support posts and holding the wire taut while being secured tothe posts.

It is further object of this invention to provide a wire rollerapparatus arranged for removal of wire from the reel in a roll form.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide wire rollerapparatus arranged to adjust to wire rolls of different widths.

Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the present invention willbecome more apparent as the description proceeds taken in conjunctionwith the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of one form of wire roller apparatus embodyingfeatures of the present invention which is particularly suitable forhandling smooth and barbed wire;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the motor mount on the roller apparatusshown in FIG. 1 drawn to an enlarged scale;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary rear end elevation view of the reel, shaft andside mount assembly of the apparatus shown in FIG. I drawn to anenlarged scale;

FIG. 5 is a rear end elevation view of another form of wire rollerapparatus with the base portion and wheels removed for clarity embodyingfeatures of the present invention which is particularly suitable forwoven wire of different widths;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation view of one side mountfor the shaft which permits detachment of the shaft from the uprightside member for removal of the reel shown in FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along lines 7-7 of FIG. 5 showing theside by side relation of the circumferentially arranged rodlike wiresupport portions of each section of the sectional reel.

Referring now to the drawings, one form of wire roller apparatus whichis particularly suitable for handling barbed and smooth wire ofsubstantial lengths is shown in FIGS. 1-4. As shown, this apparatus ingeneral comprises a vehicular body of frame assembly 11 in combinationwith a wire reel 12 mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis on thebody and a reel drive 13 adapted for positively rotating reel 12 whichis also mounted on the body forwardly of the reel for their vehicularmovement above the ground and along the work area during the unwindingof a roll of wire and for the support of the reel during the winding ofwirethereon as described more fully hereafter. Although a pull-typevehicle body of the type which is usually coupled to a tractor, truck orthe like has been illustrated and is described herein, it is understoodthat other forms of vehicular means including self-propelled vehiclesalso may be used for transport purposes.

The vehicular body or frame assembly 11 includes a base portion formedof left and right side spaced side members 14 and 15 having rearwardparallel portions and inclined forward portions which terminate in anapex at the front of the vehicle. a transverse member 16 extendingtransversely of the direction of vehicle movement and joined to the sidemembers 14 and 15 and an intermediate member 17 extending from a centralportion of the transverse member forwardly to the apex. A hitch I8 issecured at the apex. Left and right side wheels 19 and 21 are mounted onaxle portions which are secured to the side members and extend outwardlyof the transverse member 16 so as to support the base portion aboveground. While a single wheel is shown on each side of the body, anotherpreferred arrangement is to provide a tandem wheel assembly on each sideof the body to facilitate a larger wire handling capacity.

An upright portion of the vehicular body or frame assembly includesupright members 22 and 23 extending upwardly from the side members 14and 15, respectively, which are in adjoining relation to associated endsof the transverse member. A top or overhanging member 24 joining thetops of the upright members is provided to form with the upright membersand transverse member 16 an essentially boxlike framework in which thereel or roller 12 is disposed. Inclined left and right side braces 25and 26 are provided between the upright and horizontal side membersforwardly of the upright members for added strength. A shaft 27 ismounted on the upright members between the top and transverse membersfor supporting the rotary reel 12. A preferred construction for theframe assembly above described is of structural metal pipe secured atadjoining ends as by welding.

Shaft 27 is supported from the upright members by similar left and rightside mounts and a description of one applies to both in the form ofapparatus shown in FIGS. 1-4. Each mount comprises inner and outerplates 3I and 32 on opposite sides of the upright member. The upperrearward corner is notched or cut out to receive and support a tubularmember 33 which is cradled in and rigidly secured to the plates 31 and32 as by welding. These tubular members 33 are of a length slightlygreater than the width of the upright member. These shaft mounts arethus essentially a sleevelike bearing which supports the shaft from theside members for rotation about a horizontal axis.

The wire reel 12 is formed of a tubular member 34 which fits on ortelescopes over a shaft 27. Left and right side end portions 35 and 36of the reel project radially outwardly at each end of the tubular memberand terminate in spaced proximity to the top and bottom transverse framemembers 24 and 16. These end portions are formed of a circular plate ordisc 37 which is secured on the tubular member as by welding and extendradially outwardly therefrom combined with a plurality of radiallyprojecting rodlike members 38 of equal length which are secured to anouter surface of the plate. Radial members 38 are joined at their outerends by a circumferential rodlike member 39. In the preferred form ofreel shown in FIGS. 1-4, the reel is divided into two sections by anintermediate partitioning member 41 of a configuration generally similarto the end portions 35 and 36 having a plurality of radial rodlikemembers 38 with radial plates 37 on each side thereof.

In a preferred form of rotary support for the reel, tubular member 34 isfixedly secured to the shaft 27 by fasteners 42, such as bolts at eachend thereof which extend radially through the tubular member and intothe shaft 27 and these fasteners are quickly detachable to separate theshaft from the reel if desired. Rotational movement is imparted to thejoined shaft and reel from the reel drive assembly 13 by means of asprocket 43 rigidly secured at the the left end of the shaft.

The reel drive assembly 13 as shown comprises a motor 44 preferably ofthe gasoline powered type supported on a motor mount 45 secured to theframe assembly with the motor having its output shaft coupled to theinput shaft of a transmission 46 by a belt 47 with suitable sprocketsassociated with each shaft. The output shaft of the transmission has asprocket coupled in a driving relation by a chain 48 to the reel shaftsprocket 43. Transmission 46 is mounted on spaced transverse framemembers 49 secured to the frame members 15 and 17. This transmission ispreferably of the type which has several different forward speeds and atleast one speed in a reverse direction of rotation accomplished by thesetting of a lever 51. Although a motor 44 mounted on the body has beenshown as one preferred form of drive for the reel, another suitablearrangement contemplated is to employ the power takeoff from the tractoror similar vehicular means as the power source.

The motor mount 45 is arranged for transverse and lengthwise adjustmentto accommodate motors of different mounting dimensions and is arrangedfor lengthwise movement toward and away from the transmission by a leverassembly inclusive of a lever arm 52 pivotally secured at its lower endto a stationary surface on the frame and a link 53 joined to the lowerend of the lever arm 52 so as to couple and uncouple the motor 44 andthe transmission 46 and tighten the belt 47 as required. As shown moreparticularly in FIG. 3, the motor mount 45 comprises a forwardtransverse member 54 and a rearward transverse member 55 preferably of acircular section rigidly secured to the frame member 15 and eachcarrying a tubular or sleeve member 56 on each end for slidable movementtherealong. A setscrew 57 is provided for each tubular member 56 to lockthat member at a particular position.

Inner and outer rodlike side members 58 and 59 are secured at their endsto slidable members 55 so as to move transversely therewith. Each ofthese side members carries a pair of tubular or sleeve members 61 whichslide lengthwise thereof and each has a bolt 62 arranged to extendupwardly through the base openings of the motor. A plate 63 havingtransverse slotted portions fits over the upstanding rear pair of bolts62 and these rear bolts may slide transversely in the slotted portions.The lever 53 is secured to the plate 63 so that when the motor 45 isbolted to the tubular members 61, bolts 62 and motor 44 when mounted itwill slide forwardly or rearwardly over the side members 58 and 59 whenthe link 53 and arm'52 is moved either forwardly or rearwardly.

In a typical sequence of operation for the above described apparatus forpurposes of illustration, the vehicular body 11 is disposed in astanding position for the filling of the reel with wire and will usuallybe disposed in a horizontal position by a suitable support 63 at itsforward end or by the pulling vehicle being attached to hitch 18. Thefree end of a roll of wire in the form furnished by the supplier (notshown) is secured to the reel. Lever arms 51 and 52 are set and motor isstarted. With the motor 44 running, the reel 12 is positively driven towind wire from the supply roll onto the reel. More than one roll of wiremay be wound onto the reel by splicing wire ends to provide a selectedlength of wire for a particular installation. After the wire has beenwound on the reel, the assembly is moved to a working area and the freeend of the wire is secured to a stationary support such a as a fencepost. The vehicle is then moved along the work area, usually along afence line, with the reel being positively rotated in the oppositedirection to pay out the wire after the lever 51 has been set forreverse rotation. The tautening of the wire may be regulated by therotation of the reel or by locking the reel and advancing the vehiclealong the ground.

The vehicular support for the other form of wire roller apparatus shownin FIGS. through 7 is the same as that of the arrangement abovedescribed but is modified therefrom to permit removal of the reels andhas a sectional reel particularly suitable for woven wire of variouslengths. As shown, the boxlike upright frame assembly is similar to thatabove described and includes a transverse member 16, upright members 22and 23 and a top member 24 mounted on the side members and 16. The shaft27 is supported for rotation from the upright members and includes asprocket 43. The left side mount inclusive ofinncr and outer plates 31and 32 and a tubular member 33 are similar to that above described butdiffer therefrom in that they are secured on a tubular or pipe member 64which telescopes over the left side member 22 and is substantiallycoextensive therewith. This tubular member is arranged to rotate freelyon the left side member 22 about an upright axis of rotation.

The right side mount includes a tubular member 33 which sets on or iscradled in notched portions 65 (FIG. 6) of plates 31 and 32 but is notrigidly secured thereto as is the fixed arrangement of FIGS. 1-4. Thetubular member 33 is provided with a flanged portion 66 which isdetachably fastened to side member 23 as with a fastener 67 such as abolt or the like which is secured to the upright member 23. Removal ofthe reel on the shaft in this arrangement is thus accomplished byloosening fastener 67 and pivoting the shaft 27 carrying the reel bysliding the tubular member 33 off its associated cradle portion 65. Theshaft will then swing in a horizontal path to a forward position andclear the side member 23 in its pivotal movement so that the reel may beremoved.

A sectional form of wire reel illustrated on shaft 27 in FIG. 5comprises separate opposing left and right side reel sections 68 and 69with the right side section 69 which adjoins the detachable shaft towardand away from the other section 68 to provide a reel which will adjustto wire of the woven type of different widths. Reel sections 68 and 69include separate tubular members 70 and 71, respectively, disposed inspaced relation on the shaft as shown with the total length of bothtubular members 68 and 69 being substantially less in lengthwisedimension than tubular member 34 previously described to permit a rangeof movement of on one reel section with respect to the other lengthwiseof the shaft 27.

Each reel secton section has an end portion similar to that of FlGS. 1and 2 with radially projecting rodlike members 38 and a circumferentialmember 39 but in this form preferably having the associated plate 37removed. The left side reel section 68 includes a cagelike wire supportportion formed of a plurality of circumferentially v spaced rodlikemembers 72, each extending from a fixed connection on a radial member 38(FIG. 7) inwardly and axially along the tubular section where it isfixedly connected at its inner end to the inner end of its associatedtubular member 70 as illustrated at 73. Each member 72 has an outerportion 72a which inclines inwardly toward the central portion of thereel at a slight inclination and an inner inclined portion 72b whichinclines at a sharp angle and terminates in connection 73.

The right side reel section 69 has a cagelike support portion formed ofa plurality of spaced rodlike members 74 which extend axially andinwardly along its associated tubular member 71 and beyond its inner endand terminate in its innermost end in spaced relation to the tubularmember 70 of the other section. The inclination of members 74 along itslengthwise extent is generally similar to that of member 72. Radialsupports 75 extend from the inner end of the tubular member outwardlyand connect to the axially extending members 74 to secure them inposition. The plurality of circumferentially arranged members 72 areoffset in relation to members 74 so that they will be disposed in sideby side relationship as shown in FIG. 7 when the right side or movablereel is moved lengthwise of the shaft to adjust the width of the reeland form a surface upon which the wire is wound and unwound.

Suitable fasteners such as bolts 77 and 78 extend through the tubularmembers 70 and 71 of each reel section to secure these reel sections onthe shaft for rotation therewith. The right side fastener 78 is removedwhen it is desired to adjust the width of the reel section so that itstubular member will slide along the shaft to a desired setting.

A coil of wire which has been wound on the sectional reel may be removedfrom the reel by releasing the right side mount as above described andswinging the left side mount in a horizontal path about the left sideupright 22 so that the right side end portion clears the uprightsupport. The right side mount may then be slid off the shaft, followedby the right side reel section and the coil pulled from the reel.

While the present invention has been described with reference toparticular structure, there is no intent to limit the spirit and scopeto the precise details of construction except as defined in the appendedclaims.

lclaim:

1. Mobile wire roller apparatus comprising a wheel mounted body,inclusive of an elongated frame having spaced longitudinally extendingside members and upright members supported from the side members andsaid body arranged for movement along a working area, a reel mounted forrotation about a fixed horizontal axis on upper surfaces of the uprightmembers, partitioning means disposed intermediate the ends of the reelfor establishing side-by side reel portions, reel drive means forpositively rotating said reel at selected speeds and means independentlyof body movement, the drive means ineluding a reversible motor movablymounted on the body, transmission means fixedly mounted on the body andhaving its output shaft connected in driving relationship with the reel,a transmission belt connected between the motor and the input shaft ofthe transmission means, and means for selectively moving the motor onthe body relative to the transmission means whereby to control thetension on the transmission belt so as to selectively control the speedthe reel is driven by the drive assembly means, the driven reel beingadapted to wind successive lengths of wire of a selected type intautened arrangement on the respective adjoining reel portions duringrotation in one direction when the body is standing, and said drivenreel being adapted to unwind said wire from at least one reel portionduring rotation in the opposite direction while the body is movedprogressively along the work area so as to permit fastening of payed outportions of a selected wire on supporting means located at intervalsalong the work area.

2 Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, including a base portion on thebody and the fixed horizontal axis at a substantial distance above saidbase, whereby several standard lengths of wire may be spliced andsecured on one reel portion as a continuous wire having clearance withsaid base during reel rotation. 16

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the transmission means hasa plurality of forward speeds and at least one speed in the reversedirection.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, including means for manuallyselecting the speed and direction the transmission means drives thereel.

5. Mobile wire roller apparatus comprising a wheelmounted body,inclusive of an elongated frame having spaced longitudinally extendingside members and upright members supported from the side members andsaid body arranged for movement along a working area, a reel mounted forrotation about a fixed horizontal axis on upper surfaces of the uprightmembers, two separable reel sections mounted in opposing relation forconjoint rotation on a common shaft, at least one said section arrangedfor movement to selective positions lengthwise of the shaft and out offacing relation to the other section so as to receive woven wire rollsof different width on the reel and for return to opposing relation withits coacting section, reel drive means for positively rotating the reelat selected speeds and directions independently of body movement, thedrive means including a reversible motor movably mounted on the body,transmission means fixedly mounted on the body and having its outputshaft connected in driving relationship with the 17, reel, atransmission belt connected between the motor and the input shaft of thetransmission means, and means for selectively moving the motor on thebody relative to the transmission means whereby to control the tensionon the transmission belt so as to selectively control the speed the reelis driven by the drive means, the driven reel being adapted to windsuccessive widths of wire in tautened arrangement on the adjoining reelportions during rotation in one direction when the body is standing, andsaid driven reel being adapted to unwind said wire during rotation inthe opposite direction while the body is moved progressively along thework area so as to permit fastening of payed out portions of wire onsupporting means located at intervals along the work area, and means forextending and retracting the combined length of the reel sections toaccommodate different widths of woven wire. 18 I 6. Apparatus as setforth in claim 5, wherein each reel sec tion includes axially extendingwire support portions disposed in a spaced circumferential relation tothe shaft, the support portion of one said section being in offsetrelation to the support portion of the other section to provide anoverlapping relationship permitting axial movement of said sections 7.Apparatus as set forth in Claim 5, wherein said reel comprises a pair ofopposing sections mounted with one said section having a pivotal mountand the other section having a detachable mount so as to permit slidingmovement of a woven wire coil from the reel when the shaft has beenswung to a position clearing the reel from the second mount.

8. Mobile wire roller apparatus comprising a body structure mounted onwheels for movement along a working surface, reel means rotatablymounted on said body structure above said working surface, reel drivemeans for positively rotating said reel means selectively in forward orreverse direction whereby to, respectively, wind wire onto said reel orpay wire out therefrom, said drive means including a motor selectivelyoperable in a forward or reverse direction mounted on said bodystructure, transmission means mounted on said body, a transmission beltconnected between said motor and the input shaft of said transmissionmeans, means for selectively moving said motor and transmission meansrelative to each other whereby to control the tension on saidtransmission belt so as to selectively couple said transmission means tosaid motor, and coupling means for coupling the output shaft of saidtransmission means to said reel means whereby said reel means isselectively driven by said drive assembly means whenever saidtransmission means is coupled to said motor.

9. The invention recited in claim 8, wherein said motor is movablymounted on said body structure, said transmission means is fixedlymounted on said body structure, and said means for selectively movingsaid motor and transmission means relative to each other is a movablelever means connected to said motor whereby the tension on saidtransmission belt is selectively controlled by operating said levermeans to move said motor.

